November 2025
26Nov

Three in five pension funds threaten to replace asset managers: study

Despite managing US$139bn in global assets set to climb to US$200bn by 2030, asset managers are watching profits disappear. According to PwC's 2025 Global Asset and Wealth Management research, profit as a share of assets under management has already dropped roughly 19 percent since 2018, with projections showing another 9 percent decline by 2030. The crisis is structural, not temporary. According to PwC's analysis of 300 asset managers, institutional investors, and distributors, 89 percent of asset managers report profitability pressure over the...

November 26, 2025
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25Nov

UK. People’s Pension reduces government bond exposure over volatility concerns

The People’s Pension has overhauled the £6bn pre-retirement section of its default fund, cutting cash and sovereign bond exposure in favour of a global portfolio of short-dated corporate bonds. The £35bn master trust said the changes were intended to “deliver better long-term outcomes” for older savers while continuing to manage drawdown risk. It said recent fiscal concerns had driven heightened volatility in government bond markets, reducing the appeal of sovereign debt on a risk-adjusted basis. UK and US government bonds have experienced...

November 25, 2025
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21Nov

Global pension trends: What to expect in 2026

By Julien Halfon  Pension reforms are at an inflection point as UK and Dutch pension systems enter 2026 with high funding ratios, regulatory clarity, and the scope to re-risk in controlled ways. We expect much wider adoption of cash-flow driven investing strategies for defined benefit plans and some re-risking for the forthcoming Dutch Collective Defined Contribution system. The high equity tolerance of US defined contribution plans is broadening, while allocations to private markets, particularly private credit and infrastructure, continue to...

November 21, 2025
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21Nov

CalPERS becomes first US pension to adopt total portfolio approach

The board of California Public Employees’ Retirement System – with a few trepidations – officially approved the transition to its long-anticipated total portfolio approach at a meeting this week, providing staff more discretion in investment decisions. For the past year, CalPERS staff have pitched the TPA model as offering added flexibility and an opportunity to focus on investments that can best contribute to performance, instead of those that best fit pre-set allocation targets for asset classes. Stephen Gilmore, the system’s CIO,...

November 21, 2025
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14Nov

China. Long-term capital vital for pension system

BlackRock CCB Wealth Management and China Construction Bank have called for stronger long-term capital support to drive China's pension finance sector, highlighting in a recently released white paper that a stable and transparent capital market is vital for promoting long-term investment, building wealth and ensuring a resilient pension system. By the end of 2024, the total size of China's three-pillar pension system reached 15.66 trillion yuan ($2.2 trillion), accounting for less than 12 percent of GDP, indicating vast room for...

November 14, 2025
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07Nov

UK. DB Funding Code offers trustees ‘opportunity to rethink investment governance’

The updated Defined Benefit (DB) Funding Code gives trustees a valuable opportunity to rethink their investment governance and focus more strategically on their scheme’s long-term objectives, Russell Investments fiduciary manager and client CIO, Aqib Merchant, has said. Speaking at the Association of Member Nominated Trustees (AMNT) Annual Conference, Merchant said the new regime should prompt trustee boards to reassess how their time and resources are allocated as they move towards endgame. “Endgame objectives and the DB Funding Code go hand in...

November 7, 2025
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07Nov

The real obstacle to EU capital market integration is unreformed pension systems

A pension system crisis is looming in the European Union. As their populations age, EU countries must address their often alarmingly high levels of unfunded public pension liabilities, which typically vastly exceed countries’ gross public debt levels (Figure 1). These liabilities are calculated from current life expectancies, effective retirement ages and pension benefit levels. Many, if not all, EU governments will in the coming years have to change these pension system provisions and renege on earlier promises made to...

November 7, 2025
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06Nov

Pension funds risk 33 per cent return loss from failed climate transition: Ortec

A failed global transition to a low-carbon economy could slash pension fund returns by as much as 33 per cent in the next 25 years, according to new modeling by Ortec Finance. In the face of rising physical and transition risks tied to climate change, Ortec Finance’s managing director of climate scenarios and sustainability, Maurits van Joolingen, says the modeling captures the profound uncertainty surrounding climate change, from technology deployment to geopolitical responses, but the risks to long-term portfolio performance...

November 6, 2025
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05Nov

Boom of Private Markets in Latin America: What Trends Are We Seeing?

“Latin America’s Private Markets—Particularly in Private Equity, Venture Capital, and Infrastructure—Are Entering a New Phase of Maturity. According to a report by J.P. Morgan Private Bank, Latin America is no longer seen merely as a source of isolated opportunities but as a structurally relevant market. Although capital flows have decreased compared to the peaks of 2021, the resilience of funds and institutional consolidation are strengthening the foundation of the investment ecosystem. The pandemic was a transformative catalyst. During those years,...

November 5, 2025
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04Nov

Unlocking pension funds for critical infrastructure development in Ghana

Ghana's Infrastructure Crisis and Economic Imperative Ghana's economic trajectory is promising, with steady growth averaging over 5% annually in recent years, driven by sectors like agriculture, services, and mining. Yet, this progress is hampered by a chronic infrastructure deficit that undermines productivity, stifles job creation, and perpetuates inequality. Pothole-filled roads delay goods transport, erratic power supplies disrupt manufacturing, and inadequate water systems expose millions to health risks. According to estimates by the Africa Development Bank, Ghana requires at least $37...

November 4, 2025
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